Webster v. State Mut. Life Assur. Co.

50 F. Supp. 11, 1943 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2551
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. California
DecidedApril 15, 1943
DocketCiv. No. 2021
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 50 F. Supp. 11 (Webster v. State Mut. Life Assur. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Webster v. State Mut. Life Assur. Co., 50 F. Supp. 11, 1943 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2551 (S.D. Cal. 1943).

Opinion

HALL, District Judge.

On June 10, 1937, the plaintiff, Henry Webster, as the insured, under two life insurance policies then in force with the defendant, executed the first three, and his wife, Caroline, the fourth of the following documents:

1. A change of beneficiary from his wife, Caroline, to his estate (Exhibit “C”) ;

2. An amendment to his original application, whereby he relinquished the right to change beneficiaries without their consent (Exhibit “D”);

3. A designation of his wife, Caroline, as beneficiary with power to sell, surrender, or assign, without his consent, and by the same instrument transferred to her all benefits existing under the policy or which might accrue to him, his executors, or assigns (Exhibit “E”).

4. “Nomination of Beneficiary and Request” (Exhibit "F”) which was identical in terms (except for differences not material to this controversy), as a fifth document designated.

5. Exhibit “G” which was executed by Caroline on December IS, 1937. It was also designated “Nomination of Beneficiary and Request.” It is requested “That if said policies become claims” the proceeds be retained by the company in accordance with, “installment Option 'C'” of the policy, and generally directed that such proceeds be paid as follows:

(a) The interest income to be paid to her for life; then (b) to Martin Webster, her son, but if she died before her son, Martin Webster, was 30 years of age, he was to get the interest until he was 30 years of age, after which he could consume the principal or leave it. In which latter event it went to his issue, if any, at his death; and if no issue then (c) to his sister, Cecile, with the same privilege and conditions of consumption of principal.

Pursuant to a requirement of the policy that such changes must be accepted by the defendant company and endorsed on the policy to be effective, the documents and policies were transmitted to defendants home office in Massachusetts for that purpose. The parties agree that such acceptance and endorsement were necessary to make the instrument effective.

In the brief, some question is raised by the plaintiff concerning the order of acceptance of the above documents, and endorsement thereof on the policies by the defendant. But it was stipulated at the trial that on July 6, 1937, each of the first four above documents were accepted by the company and endorsed on the policy in the order above set forth, and that Exhibit “G” was accepted after its date.

On December 17, 1941, plaintiff, Henry, the insured, requested defendant to lend him the full combined loan value of the policies. Plaintiffs Caroline, Martin, and Cecile joined in the request, and on the same day executed an instrument requesting the revocation of the instrument, Exhibit “G”, above mentioned.

The defendant’s refusal to accept that request for revocation and to make the loan, on the ground that the unborn children of Martin and Cecile were irrevocably named as beneficiaries by Caroline in the instrument of December IS, 1937 (Exhibit “G”), and that the consent of such unborn children is necessary, and obviously cannot be obtained, has precipitated this suit for declaratory relief.

All of the parties, Henry, Caroline, Martin and Cecile, are still living. Martin has not attained the age of thirty years. Both he and Cecile are unmarried and have never had issue, and are now without issue born or in esse.

The home office of the defendant is in Massachusetts. The policies were taken out in New York where the plaintiff Henry and his family lived for a time, later acquiring residence in California. The plaintiffs’ brief suggests some question of conflict of laws. But that question does not seem to be general in the case, and if it arises in connection with any point, will [14]*14be disposed of in the consideration of that particular proposition.

In view of the fact that Exhibit “G” supplants Exhibit “F,” and, as pointed out, was identical in terms, except for matters not involved in this decision, no further attention will be given to Exhibit “F.”

Exhibit “G,” the defendant claims, is the instrument which designated the unborn issue of Martin and Cecile as beneficiaries, and is irrevocable because the insured waived his right to change beneficiaries, by executing Exhibit “D.”

Many questions concerning the validity of the steps before the execution of Exhibit “G” are discussed by the parties in their briefs. Not all of these questions are necessary to be decided. The ultimate question the parties w^nt decided, is whether or not the company can make the requested loan.

If the parties are properly before the court, and if Exhibit “G” can be revoked by Caroline, Martin, and Cecile, as attempted on December 17, 1941, then, to make the loan takes only the request by the owner of the policy and the consent of the living persons remaining as beneficiaries.

Considering first the question as to whether or not the parties are properly before the court.

On that point it is suggested that the unborn (and as yet unconceived) issue of Martin and Cecile have a sufficient interest in the proceeds of said policies to entitle them to be made parties to, or be represented in, this action. If it is determined that such interests exist, then it must be decided whether or not those interests are now, or can be represented by any of the persons who are now parties to the action or some one appointed especially for that purpose.

If their interest is such as to require them to be made parties to this action or to be represented either virtually or specially; and if their interests are not now and cannot be properly represented, then, of course, they cannot be made parties, as they are not yet in being. And it would follow that no further consideration need or can be given to the other issues raised in this lawsuit.

As will appear later in this memorandum, the unborn children of Martin and Cecile do not have vested interests according to the terms of the policies involved.

To apply the rule of indispensability of parties to such unborn issue where their interest is not vested would require that the rights and interests of living persons be postponed until it is determined whether or not Martin and Cecile ever have any children, or whether or not if they do have children, Martin will have consumed the principal, or, if Cecile ever has any children, Martin will have died without issue, or consumed the principal.

Borrowing from the language of a recent notable retort it may be said that such a proposition is too “ify,” to freeze the rights of all the parties involved until such things which may never happen might not happen.

The exception1 to the rule of indispensable parties permits the litigation to proceed without the presence, as parties, of the unborn issue of Martin and Cecile.

But it does not follow that their interests have no right to be represented. Whatever ultimate conclusion is made as to their rights, it is plain that there is a sufficient controversy concerning such interests that some one should be before the court to represent them.

It is not so much the representation of the persons, but the representation of the interests, with which the law is concerned in this type of action.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
50 F. Supp. 11, 1943 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2551, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/webster-v-state-mut-life-assur-co-casd-1943.